Scoop (utensil)


[Image:Kitchen-Scooper-Large.jpg|thumb|Disher style scoop]
[Image:Cup Measure 1-8.jpg|thumb|A measuring scoop]
In common usage, a scoop is any specialized spoon used to serve food.

Terminology

In the technical terms used by the food service industry and in the retail and wholesale food utensil industries, there is a clear distinction among three types of scoop: the disher, which is used to measure a portion, to make melon balls, and often to serve ice cream ; the ice cream scoop; and the transfer scoop which is used to measure or to transfer an unspecified amount of a bulk dry foodstuff such as rice, flour, or sugar.
Dishers are usually hemispherical like an ice cream scoop, while measuring scoops are usually cylindrical, and transfer scoops are usually shovel-shaped.

Disher

Some dishers have mechanical levers which help release the tool's contents. Traditional dishers are sized by the number of scoops per quart, but may also be sized by ounces, the diameter of the bowl, or the number of tablespoons they hold.

Standard sizes

The table below is the standard definition in the US food industry, but actual capacity varies by manufacturer.
Handle colorScoops per quartTypical useUS fluid ouncesUS tablespoonUS cupDiameter
48.0161236.63
56.412 189.33
65.310 1583
8Ice cream, jumbo cupcakes, mashed potatoes4.081182
10Texas-size muffins, popovers3.26 952
12Ice cream, standard muffins2.75 802 or 2
142.44 712
16Pancakes2.04592
20Ice cream, giant cookies1.63 472
24Regular cupcakes, sorbet, mashed potatoes1.32 382
30Silver-dollar pancakes, candies1.12 331
360.941 27.81
40Mini muffins0.81 241
50Mini cupcakes, canapés0.641 19
60Large cookies0.5316
70Cookies0.46141
100Chocolate truffles0.329

Ice cream scoop

Some designs have a moveable mechanism to help release the ice cream from the scoop, while other designs rely more on keeping the scoop warm enough to partially melt the frozen dessert. Some ice cream scoops have a thermally conductive liquid in the handle to help keep the ice cream from freezing to the scoop's metal.

History

Alfred L. Cralle, a porter in a drug store and at a hotel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, noticed that servers at the hotel had trouble with ice cream sticking to serving spoons, and he developed an ice cream scoop. On June 10, 1896, Cralle applied for a patent on his invention. He was awarded patent 576,395 on February 2, 1897. The patented "Ice Cream Mold and Disher" was an ice cream scoop with a built-in scraper to allow for one-handed operation. Cralle's functional design is reflected in modern ice cream scoops.

Transfer scoop

Transfer scoops are used to transfer bulk foods from large storage containers to smaller containers, and generally do not have any measurement markings, as their purpose is to transfer efficiently, and taking time to adjust the amount in a scoop would slow the transfer rate.
An ice cream spade is a sturdy spade-shaped large shallow spoon, used to transfer large amounts of hard frozen ice cream, stiff frozen desserts, or some other stiff food paste. It is also well-shaped to scrape the insides of ice cream containers and tubs.

Other types